Coat
by Dark Hikari Twilight
Summary: As Genesis waits to hear about his promotion, a certain General as a present for the man. Fluff


Another Oneshot! This time a bit more fluff than normal, but I can't be depressing all the time or I'd go mad :)- DHT

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Genesis stood impatiently in his dorm room. The second class quarters were a bit of a leg up from the 3rd class barracks and a world away from the lodgings provided for the infantry and cadets, but it was still a plan room with white walls, two beds, a private bathroom (for which Genesis was grateful for if nothing else) and a small study with a pair of decks and book shelves that the ginger had managed to smuggle in. The floor was bare tile, but he and his roommate- his best friend Angeal- had acquired a rug to make early mornings a bit more tolerable. There was no kitchen, much to the ginger's dismay, as all Seconds and below were expected to dine in the company mess hall.

Genesis had always hated this dorm, and if things went well, he'd no longer have to endure the life of a second class SOLDIER. Earlier that day he'd taken his promotion exam. He'd been recommended a full 6 months early, much to his surprise, and no matter what he did to try and worm the identity of the man who did it out of the director, he was met with a brick wall.

Not that he didn't have his suspicions. "Sephiroth." he muttered, damn near convinced his friend had done it. Though the fact he could call the General his friend was an amazing achievement. His first introduction to the man had not gone...smoothly. Pride or not, Genesis had been raised as a rich kid, though he would never allow the tag of "spoiled brat" to be placed upon himself, his parents treatment of him enough to deter that moniker, he still had an air of superiority about him. And when face with the great General, someone who he even admired at heart, he still came across as pompous as ever.

He remembered making some offhand remark about Sephiroth's coat and how he'd take it from him someday. In retrospect challenging the most powerful man on the planet had not been one of Genesis's brightest decisions, but the General had simply looked at him, an odd smile on his lips_. "I'd like to see you try." _

Sephiroth had written Genesis off at that point as another over eager cadet, which had in turn infuriated the fiery redhead. It wasn't until after the ginger had made it into SOLDIER proper that the chance to change the General's mind surfaced. The life of a 3rd Class SOLDIER had been hectic, it was more following orders, and less freedom then Genesis had hoped for. His performance however had been top notch shocking a lot of his commanding officers who doubted that the scrawny young man had what it took to be a SOLDIER. Expertly he had made up for his lack of bulk with agility and intelligence, garnering praise and liking him to Shinra's illustrious General.

Still he fell below the man's radar, until a mission came up in Wutai that called for skill such as his. Sephiroth had let the mission, and while Genesis had thought he saw a brief flash of recognition in those Mako eyes, he caulked it up to hopeful thinking.

The mission itself had turned into a bloody mess. 2 of the men sent had died and they would have failed entirely if not for Sephiroth's cool calculating thought process. Genesis as it turned out seemed to be the only other member of the team that was able to keep up with the man, both on a mental and physical level. He'd kept his panic under wraps, and proved to be a good board for Sephiroth to bounce ideas off of.

The General had actually praised him for his efforts, but like most times in his life, Genesis's mouth got the best of him. _"I was serious when I said I wanted your coat."_ he had smirked.

Sephiroth looked at him a moment, almost in confusion, before a deep laughter came out of his mouth. The ginger would have been put off if he hadn't decided it was one of the most beautiful noises the other man could make.

After that the question of whether or not he'd made his mark on the other man was gone. A couple of requests had been put in for him to accompany Sephiroth yet again, and when he'd see the man in passing Genesis would often see an odd smile form on the other man's lips accompanied by a hand brushing off some dust from his usually immaculate coat. It was a gesture meant for him and the ginger knew it.

He began to become more bold, attempting to encroach on the General's private life. It was little things at first, seating himself next to the General in the mess hall, on the occasion the man was actually there to eat. Normally no one had the nerve to enter Sephiroth's personal space. And he could distinctly remember the looks of abject horror on the men's faces as he broke the unwritten rule. The response was better than expected. The other man had simply been confused at first, then seemed to be _happy_ someone had bother to sit with him.

Later on Genesis had come to discover that Shinra's great General was actually lonely. No one had ever bothered to try and be his _friend_ before. And soon Genesis was showing up at Sephiroth's apartment with food, wine and movies. Once he had made himself comfortable with the other man's presence he had drug along Angeal, who was more than a perfect fit for their little gatherings.

It wasn't perfect, Genesis and Sephiroth seemed like oil and water at times, but even their arguments seemed to be something the General treasured, and the ginger remembered Angeal theorizing one time that Sephiroth actually _liked_ provoking Genesis's fiery temper, as long as it didn't go too far. All forms of social interaction seemed almost completely foreign to the man including arguments.

Amongst them, Genesis would always threaten to take the other man's coat. The response was usually _"Come and try."_

A sigh escaped his lips as he placed his hands behind his head, and fell down onto his bed. Hair covering his face, he hit the bed with a "poof" as the air escaped his down comforter. It was soft and warm, and another thing he had smuggled into his dorm (he was not spoiled!). Part of him wished Angeal was here to distract him, and eventually share in his success, but his best friend was currently out on a mission.

Sephiroth was another choice at this point, but the man was busy, and he knew he had better things to do than sit in a second class dorm waiting on a phone call with Genesis.

He closed his eyes, allowing himself to relax into the soft bed when a knock came at his door. "Coming" he called out, wondering who on earth it could be. Despite his seemly social nature Genesis really only spent his time with Angeal and Sephiroth.

He padded over to the doorway, barefoot, liking the feel of the carpet under his feet, and opened the door. Genesis nearly dropped his jaw in surprise. "Sephiroth?"

The General was standing there another odd smile on his face, and a package under his arm. "Hello Genesis."

Swiftly the ginger moved out of the way, allowing Sephiroth into his room, still confused as he shut the door. "I figured you would be in a meeting or something." he questioned turning back to look at Sephiroth as he dropped the package wrapped in brown paper on Genesis's bed.

"I just got out of one actually." the man explained.

Genesis shook his head. "Well then I'm honored you decided to come find me." he teased before his eyes fell to the package dumped on his bed. "What is that?"

"It's for you." Sephiroth's tone was almost cryptic in nature, and Genesis looked between him and the package on the bed, mind racing over what it could possibly be.

Anticipating grew as the ginger picked the package up, part of him thought it might have been a new first class uniform, but as he tore away the paper the smell of new leather hit him, and he held it out, feeling the supple material under his fingers. In his hands was a beautiful red leather duster. "Seph?" he asked not sure what to say.

"I had it made when I heard you were being put up for a promotion. I know you always said you wanted my coat, but I'm rather attached to it, and besides Red is a better color for you anyway." Sephiroth offered, as an explanation. "Congratulations by the way."

"You mean?" Genesis smiled, before he threw his arms around Sephiroth "Thank you!" The General had been unaccustomed to physical contact, but he took it as a sign that the ginger had liked his present. Besides having the other man in his arms felt...good he thought as he wrapped his own back around Genesis.

"You're welcome." he replied not pulling away. "They announced it in the meeting, and I told the Director that I'd rather inform you personally."

Genesis pulled away himself, slightly embarrassed at the display. He would regret leaving Angeal behind, but knew the man would be following him soon enough. There was no way the honor bound man wouldn't make 1st. And now Sephiroth would not be so lonely anymore.


End file.
